Warning to workers over Croke Park

In a statement today it said that the Government’s planned reduction in its paybill by €1 billion would be required whether or not the proposed new Croke Park agreement was ratified or not by public service trade unions.

“ If the current recommendation wasn't to be ratified the current agreement would cease, along with the protections it gives, as new measures would be required.

"This was clearly communicated to the public services committee (of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions ) before the talks. Legislation will be prepared to facilitate this."

The department said there had been a suggestion by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation that the original Croke Park agreement would extend into mid next year and that no cuts in pay were required.

“That is not the case.”

A number of trade unions and organisations that are opposed to the new Croke Park agreement proposals have argued that the original deal would extend until some stage next year.

Speaking on RTÉ 's Morning Ireland on Thursday , the director of industrial relations at the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, Phil Ni Sheadhgha, said that if the new proposals were rejected, the first Croke Park agreement would continue in existence until the middle of next year.

On Wednesday the general secretary of the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors, John Redmond, said: "We have a Croke Park agreement that lasts until the middle of 2014 and we haven't negotiated away that deal yet.

“We have given everything that was required to us under that deal and we expect the Government to abide by what they signed up to.”